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Awards and recognition

hromewell Agustin R. Mojica, former intern in the International Network for the Genetic Evaluation of Rice, won Best Undergraduate Research for his thesis, Molecular Mapping of Quantitative Trait Loci (QTL) for Heat Tolerance in Rice (Oryza sativa L.) During Reproductive Stage Using Microsatellite Markers, by the Philippine Society for the Advancement of Genetics in November 2008. Another finalist in the competition, John Eric B. Canicosa, was also a former intern at IRRI. Both are graduates of the University of the Philippines Los Baos. Mojica has now joined IRRI as a researcher at the T.T. Chang Genetic Resources Center. J.K. Ladha, senior scientist and Rice-Wheat Consortium coordinator, and S.K. De Datta, former IRRI agronomist and principal scientist (1964-91), were named fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science on 14 February in Chicago. Jessica D. Rey, postdoctoral fellow at the T.T. Chang Genetic Resources Center, won the 2008 Outstanding Thesis and Dissertation Award (advanced S&T for biology and related fields) from the Philippine Council for Advanced Science and Technology Research and Development. Her thesis was titled Quantitative resistance loci (QRL) against bacterial blight (caused by Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae) and leaf blast (caused by Pyricularia oryzae Sacc.). Gisella Cruz Garca, a Ph.D. candidate from the Crop and Weed Ecology Group, Wageningen, and studying with the Weed Group in IRRIs
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Crop and Environmental Sciences Division, was invited to join the Women in Science Week (28 February6 March) in Paris, France. She is one of 15 who received the UNESCOLOral international fellowship award for young women in the life sciences in 2007. Betty Sarah R. Carreon, assistant manager in the Financial Operations Unit, will leave for Kansas, USA, on 5 April as a member of the 2009 Group Study Exchange Team of Rotary International District 3820. The GSE program is funded by the Rotary Foundation and is a unique cultural and vocational exchange opportunity for business people and professionals between the ages of 25 and 40 who are in the early stages of their careers. Syed M.A. Jabbar, an affiliate Ph.D. research scholar at IRRI, was conferred a lifetime membership by the Gamma Sigma Delta Honor Society of Agriculture-University of the Philippines Chapter for his outstanding academic achievement in his Ph.D. program. Jabbar is pursuing his doctorate in soil science, with a minor in agronomy, at UPLB.

of IFAD when he takes up his post on 1 April. Sophie Clayton arrived from Canberra, Australia, in February to begin her work as IRRIs new spokesperson and media relations manager.

Keeping up with IRRI staff

ichard Bruskiewich, senior scientist (bioinformatics), was elected to an adjunct faculty position in the Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry at Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. Kanayo F. Nwanze, former director general of the Africa Rice Center, or WARDA, has been appointed president of the International Fund for Agricultural Development of the United Nations. Nwanze becomes the fifth president
Rice Today April-June 2009

Newly appointed scientists at IRRI are Sarah J. Beebout (soil chemistry), Ruben Lampayan (water management), Tao Li (crop modeling), Florencia Palis (social anthropology), Endang Septiningsih (molecular genetics), and Michael Thomson (molecular genetics). Jagadish Timsina joined the IRRI-Bangladesh office in December 2008 as senior scientist. New associate scientists are Ma. Socorro Almazan, Lolita Garcia, and Ma. Elizabeth Naredo; new assistant scientists are Crisanta Bueno, Teodoro Correa Jr., Manuel Esguerra, Joie Ramos, and Dennis Tuyogon. Wei Zhou joined the Plant Breeding, Genetics, and Biotechnology Division as visiting research fellow. Helal Uddin Ahmed, John Damien Platten, and Kurniawan Rudi Trijatmiko are IRRIs new postdoctoral fellows. Himanshu Pathak, senior associate scientist and co-facilitator of the Rice-Wheat Consortium at the IRRI-India office, left on 17 January after completing his 3-year stay and returned to his parent organization, the Indian Agricultural Research Institute in New Delhi, as senior scientist. Virender Kumar will take over from Dr. Pathak until the vacated position is filled. Mohammad Asaduzzaman of the IRRI-Bangladesh office, Cao Meng of the IRRI-China office, Somayanda Impa, postdoctoral

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fellow, and Obdulia Jolejole, senior manager of Food and Housing Services, have left IRRI. Ms. Jolejole, though, will stay for a few more months in a consulting role until someone is identified to replace her.

Moving on
Hans-Jochen de Haas, former BMZ Germany representative to the CGIAR and member of IRRIs strategic planning external panel, passed away on 29 January. Remedios Corral, who served as matron of Food and Housing Services for 29 years, passed away on 3 March.

TR AINING COURSES AT IRRI

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Rice: Research to Production IRRI Training Center, Los Baos, Philippines, 18 May-5 June 2009 the course aims to create a new generation of plant scientists that are well networked in the international community and understand the importance of innovative plant science in tackling global problems. topics include an understanding of the basics of rice production in Asia; familiarity with the germplasm collection at iRRi and current issues related to germplasm exchange and intellectual property; an appreciation of the research issues of iRRi and its developing partners; hands-on skills related to rice breeding, molecular genetics, and genomics; an understanding of how to structure effective international collaboration; and a plan and personal contacts to work effectively as part of the international research community in the future. Basic Experimental Design and Data Analysis Using CropStat (2nd offering) IRRI Training Center, Los Baos, Philippines, 22-26 June 2009 the course is designed to acquaint researchers with the principles of experimental design, basic experimental designs used in rice research, analysis of variance and regression, and correlation analysis. it also introduces cropStat, a microcomputer-based statistical package that facilitates the analysis of experimental data. Rice Breeding Course: Laying the Foundation for the Second Green Revolution IRRI Training Center, Los Baos, Philippines, 1-16 September 2009 the course aims to develop the next generation of rice breeders adept in using modern tools for enhancing the precision and efficiency of their breeding programs. it will provide the theoretical background on modern breeding methods and techniques, including the use of biotechnology; planning and information management tools and experimental techniques and software; the opportunity to share experiences with other rice breeders; and the latest updates on areas relevant to rice breeding and the worldwide exchange of rice genetic resources. the course is for breeders and agronomists working on variety development or testing in both the public and private sector. Mixed Model Analysis Using CropStat IRRI Training Center, Los Baos, Philippines, 5-9 October 2009 the course is designed to acquaint researchers with mixed model analysis and introduce cropStats module on mixed model Analysis using REmL (restricted maximum likelihood). it employs a combination of lectures and hands-on exercises on cropStat to help the participants become more familiar with basic statistical methods such as computing descriptive statistics, hypothesis testing, and analysis of variance. those interested in registering must have experience in data analysis and knowledge of at least one statistical software. Leadership Course for Asian Women in Agricultural R&D and Extension IRRI Training Center, Los Baos, Philippines, 19-30 October 2009 topics include Asian women in the workplace, mainstreaming gender concerns in the workplace, leadership and management, personality development, developing work-related knowledge and skills, and relating to others. For more details, contact Dr. Noel Magor, head, IRRI Training Center (IRRITraining@cgiar.org) or see www.training.irri.org.

The 3rd International Rice Congress (IRC2010), set for 9-12 November 2010, in Hanoi, Vietnam, is the world's largest gathering of the rice industry. With the theme Rice for Future Generations, it will include the 28th International Rice Research Conference, the 3rd World Rice Commerce Conference, the 3rd International Rice Technology and Cultural Expo, and 50th anniversary activities of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). Watch for more details in future issues of Rice Today.

Rice Today April-June 2009